Deathly Secrets
by IceWaterDragon
Summary: Ayaka (OC) has spent too long running from ghosts to look at the future ahead of her, and after being stuck on an island for 7 years she feels the mistakes of her past creeping up on her. With the pressure of the Grand Magic Games and the nerve-wrecking excitement of her first crush in years, the young mage is stuck in a tornado of feelings in a way too dangerous time. OCxSting
1. Prologue

**Prologue**

* * *

When she first met Fairy Tail she was bruised and beaten. Her clothes were torn and covered in mutt as she had been running for days. Beneath that ripped garment were scars and cuts, some from her escape others from long before that. They littered her thin thighs and way too prominent rips, distracting everyone who would come to see her from her undernourished body. The physical wounds were sever but the real problem ran even deeper. She had been mentally scarred enough so to turn away every single person who extended their hand to her. Unconsciously she had started to grow suspicious of everyone who would even glance at her for too long let alone try to speak to her.

So it came as more than a surprise to her when she met emhim/em and actually was capable of granting him access into her life. Maybe it was because his bruises and cuts reminded her of her own or because she could relate to the sadness displaying in his eyes. Or maybe it was simply because his anti-social behaviour rivalled her own attitude. Whatever may have drawn her to him she decided that she would not give up on this grumpy mess of a kid until she had him figured out.

When he first noticed her little body hidden behind a large tree he brushed it off, probably thinking that she was lost and would leave him alone if he did the same. So he just continued his training focused and oblivious of his onlooker. The next day he would come to the same spot in the woods again to train on his skills. He would work for hours trying to perfect both his physical as well as his magical abilities. And everyday she would be there to watch him. What sounds like an unhealthy obsession was actually more of a cry for help for her. She didn't have the trust to directly talk to him or at least make herself known but still she craved contact, human interaction, more than anything else. So she decided to stay. There in the woods close to the training spot of the sad-eyed kid so she could watch him train and pretend like he knew her, like he would protect her.

In all honesty she was more than capable of protecting herself. With her own magic and her hidden secret she was probably stronger than most mages but her fear held her back. Using her powers openly would give away who she was and that information in the hands of the wrong people would put her in danger. So she hid her primary magic and adopted a new style of fighting which was – of course – inspired by the dark haired child she always watched. She didn't try to copy his magic, but she did take note of how he would push his physical powers to the limit in every training. He would practice martial arts as well as muscle strength before he would even begin to use his magic.

Impressed by how strong the boy was and comparing it to her own weakness she tried to adopt his practice routine. So she secretly used the boy's training spot while he was away. She would try to imitate his kicks and punches against a tree, but only ended up with bloodied knuckles and aches all over her body. Her lack of food also didn't help the matter. Nevertheless, she practiced every day to get stronger, to be able to defend herself when the time came. She would go to the boy's training area and practice his physical routine until _that _day.

She was so engrossed in her practice, so keen on getting the move right and hitting the mark on the tree perfectly that she didn't sense the presence nearing her.

"Oi! Who are you?"

Heart nearly jumping out of her chest she flinched, turning around to find the young boy she had been watching every day since she came to these woods watching her, leaning next to the large tree she normally hid behind hands crossed and scowl on his face. She couldn't speak, too terrified of what would happen now that she had finally been caught. She was using emhis/em training spot, imitating emhis/em routine.

"I asked you something, so answer already." He barked the order, clearly agitated to find someone else use his secret training spot without asking.

"I-I-I'm Ayaka," she stammered in fright. Her eyes were as big as a deer's as she looked at the confident mage standin in front of her. She hadn't talked to anyone in months let alone fought anyone so if this boy was going to give her a hard time for her intrusion she would stand no chance against him.

"What are you doing here?" He squinted his eyes at her. "Aren't you the one who's been watching me train every day like a creep?"

It wasn't a question, much more an accusation, she knew that. She knew she had been caught, but still admitting what exactly she had been doing felt wrong to her, she didn't even admit how obviously weird her actions were to herself so now being confronted about them was more than just uncomfortable.

"I-I'm not a creep! I didn't want to intrude, I just saw you train one day and I-I've never seen anyone train like that so I wanted to learn it as well!" She hastily explained her actions, then continued, "I'm sorry for making you uncomfortable! I really just wanted to learn!"

"Tsk…" He pushed himself away from the tree, letting his arms fall to his side as he slowly stepped towards her. Ayaka flinched again at the sudden movement and pressed her back against her previous target (aka a tree at the end of the clearing). Ignoring her defensive stance he neared the tiny girl.

"If you want to train you should get a teacher, because what you were doing just now was nothing like what I did. In fact, you mostly just hurt yourself. Look!" He reached forward, taking her bloody hand in his and ever so gently stroking her wounded knuckles with the tip of his thumb. "You injured yourself. If you leave it like this it will scar."

Dumbfounded Ayaka stayed silent. She didn't care about scars, how could she with the ones decorating her skin all over her body. Just because her knuckles were a more visible place than her stomach didn't make her care about them anymore.

"Why are you even here? Don't you have a home? Parents waiting for you?"

"No." The answer was firm this time, no stutter in her voice.

"Hmm… me neither. But I have the guild, I guess. Even with annoying ass twat in there." He sounded like he was speaking to himself rather than her. Still she couldn't help but chuckle at his expression of "ass twat", which made him smile.

"You look lonely," he commented.

"So do you."

He was taken aback by that. But still he didn't stop pestering. For some reason he was intrigued by the thin girl with bloody hands who by the way seemed way too skinny for her height.

"Are you?" she inquired. Somehow she wanted him to be. Selfish, she knew, but she wanted someone to share her fate.

But he didn't answer. Instead he looked her up and down, furrowing his eyebrows as he did so, as if disapproving of what he saw.

"You need to eat", he stated, leaving no room for discussion. The girl obviously was undernourished. Not only that but she was filthy. Her hair was dishevelled and her clothes dirty and torn. She looked like she had been sleeping in these woods for the past month, which actually seemed quite plausible for the boy.

Taking the initiative he tugged at her hand. "Come on. I will bring you to the guild. You can eat there and clean up. Maybe one of the others has spare clothes that will fit you." He tugged at her hand again, meaning to pull her away from the tree she was still leaning against and in the direction of the guild building but she wouldn't budge.

"Come on, let's go!" He tried again but Ayaka just pressed her heels into the ground as a response. There was no way in hell she would go to a bunch of strangers for help. Just because this boy trusted this 'guild' didn't mean that she would.

"I don't even know your name, why should I follow you anywhere?" She asked, unnerved by the now stronger pull on her wrist. The young mage, being way stronger than she herself, had managed to unroot her from her firm position against the tree and drag her into the middle of the training area already. Still she tried to break free from the grip on her hand. She probably could get him to let go through her magic but she didn't actually see a threat in the young man who she had been watching for a month now. The thought of being dragged in the middle of a bunch of other mages, however, made her more than nervous.

"I'm Gray. Gray Fullbuster. And I'm taking you to Fairy Tail." With those words he heaved the light girl over his shoulder and carried her out of the shadows of the woods, while she kicked and screamed into his back.


	2. Chapter 1

**Chapter 1**

* * *

She smiled. Tears slowly gathering in her eyes as she looked out over the city. She had been saved by her guild once again after the awful attack on Tenrou Island. And now she was standing at the top of this hill again, re-entering the village after another horrifying event in her life. It reminded her so much of back then, when she was a little kid and stumbled upon Magnolia while running away. At that time the place held no meaning to her as she had just expected to pass through it on her flight. Now, however, this was her home.

"Gray!" she called out to the – still young looking – mage behind her.

"Hmm?"

"Gray, come on! Aren't you excited to be here again?" She shouted at the slowly following man, who obviously wasn't as over the top about their short trip as she was.

"I am. But I don't get why we had to come to these stupid woods as soon as we arrived. Shouldn't we – I don't know – maybe check out our apartments before coming here?" he asked sarcastically, as if going to the place they met was such a bother for him.

"You're just bitter, because it reminds you of all the times I've kicked your ass here." She stuck her tongue out at him as he finally caught up to her, which earned her a flick on the forehead.

"The seven years must have messed with your memory somehow, because all emI/em can remember is you begging me for mercy on those very grounds."

She laughed at his retort, well aware that it was actually her who was in the lead. "You do know that just because Juvia worships the land you walk on doesn't actually make you a god, right?" She teased again as she knew how much mentioning the blue haired water mage would annoy him.

Groaning he started complaining about his colleague once again, "Well, I'm not really begging to be worshipped, or stalked and fantasised over. Gosh, why can't she just take it down a notch?"

Aya grinned. "Well…", she dragged out the word. "I guess if you just gave in and responded to her advances the fangirling would finally stop. She _is_ kinda hot, don't you think?" Wiggling her eyebrows suggestively she got another groan out of Gray.

"Please stop. I really don't want to hear about it."

She huffed in fake anger due to not getting to tease him about his not-so-secret admirer anymore. "Well, that's just boring. Now what else should I entertain myself with?"

Gray shoved her away from him as he blushed making Aya erupt with laughter. He just was too easy to tease. Really it was his fault for giving her such good reactions.

They finally continued their journey from the top of the hill deeper into the woods, where Gray's secret training spot once was located. Aya, again and as always, was a step ahead of her companion as she was basically skipping through the woods. Excitement ran through her veins with the thought of seeing her old training spot again, so she was even faster on her feet than usual making it seem as if she was barely touching the floor with how light and quick her steps were.

"Oi! Wait up!" Gray had fallen behind again, trying to catch up with his mage friend with heavy steps completely contrasting the girl in front of him. To anyone close it must've sounded like there really was just one person running through the woods on his own, so silent were the young female mage's steps.

"No can do. I'm nearly there!" She laughed in amusement, not in the slightest bit surprised that Gray, in fact, couldn't keep up with her. She had always been the faster one, her thin stature giving her an advantage in any race especially against the muscular mage behind her. And she loved reminding him of that of course she sped up even more as soon as Gray started complaining.

While she was rushing past the trees and the plants over the barrows and through the mutt she was giggling childishly. How she loved the feeling of speeding, the wind rushing past her and gracing her skin ever so lightly giving her goose bumps all over and the dirt under her soles which gave in a little bit with every step she took, sinking in under her weight for just a millisecond under her gentle touch. It made the blood rush in her veins, made her feel it pumping through her body as her heart beat accelerated.

Until she suddenly stopped, her feet coming to a halt on their own as she reached the clearing. As if in trance she reached a hand out to the large tree on her right tracing over the pattern of the bark. Under her fingertips she felt the cuts they had made together, marking down their scores after every battle (also the proof that she, indeed, was leading). It was a rather immature competition they had started after Aya had joined the guild. Gray had insisted on teaching her martial arts personally after seeing her horrible failure of training herself. She'd steadily gotten better at fighting without using her primary magic, not meaning she hadn't practice that as well, she had, just in secret. When she'd finally reached his level he suggested having real battles, sparring like Natsu and him did just for fun. It had seemed risky to her at first as she didn't want to use her primary magic, not even in front of her best friend, but Gray once again had managed to talk her into it.

She laughed as her fingers glided over the telly marks next to Gray's initials. God, had he kicked her arse the first couple times they'd spared. She had been so focused on her physical techniques that she'd completely forgotten about the boy's ice make magic. Shocked and quite literally frozen to the spot she'd lost the fight within seconds. His first wins had been so easy, he'd not even really tried most of the time but Aya had been so overwhelmed with her new method of fighting that it had been near to impossible for her to win.

Then her hand lowered to another row of marks next to two letters. emA.K./em The row of tellies stretched out way farther than the one on top, surely surpassing it by at least twenty centimetres.

"Tsk… begging my ass." Her hand fell to her side again as her head turned away from the old tree and her eyes found the clearing.

The sparring grounds had transformed into a beautiful meadow over the course of the last seven years, hiding any traces that may have still been there from where they'd used to fight. The grass was green and long and pretty yellow and red flowers grew between it. The only evidence of the once training area was the wrecked bark of the trees surrounding the grounds they used for training. The wood had cuts from Aya's sword and was grazed from their countless attacks in order to perfect their martial arts skills.

"God, we really were gone for that long, huh?"

She couldn't help but jump as Gray suddenly appeared behind her laying an arm on her shoulder as he spoke. The gasp which escaped her lips made him laugh as did the perplexed expression on her face.

"Bastard! Why do you always have to do that?", she hissed in anger.

He held up his arms in fake surrender as Aya raised hers to hit him square over the chest for once again scaring her. When they'd been little he had used every single opportunity he'd got to scare the young mage, loving how big her doe eyes would become and how her bottom lip would jut out just a tiny bit more than usual in the cutest pout he'd ever seen.

Still grinning he placed a hand on the top of her head and ruffled her hair gently. Another thing she hated. He still treated her like a little kid sometimes even though she most definitely was not. Actually, they were both around the same age, as were her and Natsu and Lisanna and Lucy, but while everyone else treated her as a senior (mainly due to her S-rank title) Gray still saw her as his little sister, his responsibility.

To say that that sometimes sucked was an understatement, it was simply embarrassing to hold the title of S-rank mage and at the same time be babied by their best friend. Not to forget the many date opportunities Gray had ruined over the course of their friendship. Nevertheless she loved him from the bottom of her heart, not in the weird stalker way Juvia did but as a sister would love her brother, so she put up with his overprotective antics.

"Where is Mika by the way?", Gray suddenly asked, only now remembering the absence of the little cat.

Ayaka smiled softly at the mention of her loyal companion. "I asked Happy to look after her for the time being. She seemed tired and I didn't want to drag her up here with us if she already wasn't feeling well."

"But dragging me was okay?!", Gray deadpanned.

She pretended to think for a moment, then smiled heartily at the male mage as she answered, "Yep." Hastily, she grabbed his wrist and pulled him in the middle of the meadow before he could protest again, stunning him into silence. Taking her chance she pushed him down so he was lying on his back in the field then plopped down next to him, never letting go of his hand.

They stayed silent for a while, the young boy looking over at his colleague with curiosity in his eyes while she was staring at the sky above them. Neither of them knew what to say, not knowing how to articulate what they both were feeling. It was hard to express after all, the feeling of having missed half of their youth gnarling away at their conscience, making them painfully aware of their mortality. Worse than that was the sentiment probably all of the Tenrou people shared. They had left their mates to fight on their own, while they were sleeping on an island. All of those people dearest to them had suffered while they were gone and they could do nothing to change that, couldn't replay life to make sorrow into happiness and humiliation into pride. They had messed up indefinitely.

Ayaka was the first one to speak. Taking in a huge gasp of air as if she had only now remembered that she needed to breathe, she rolled on her side and faced the black haired ice mage.

"Gray…", she whispered, somehow scared of speaking louder, "I don't- I mean- Fuck. How are we supposed to repair what we've damaged?"

She didn't need to elaborate for him to understand what she meant. But still he had no answer for her, nothing that would reassure her at least. So he stayed quiet and raised his other hand – not the one that was still intertwined with hers – and caressed her cheek. It was a cheesy move, admittedly so, but it seemed to calm down Ayaka's erratic heart.

Again they kept quiet, not even moving a muscle as they tried to come up with something to say that would put them both at ease. They weren't like Natsu, neither Gray nor Ayaka had the ability to spew absolute nonsense in the dreariest situations and motivate others with it. They were, to put it simple, sulkers. They both knew that, never tried to hide it, but sometimes both of them wished they had a little pocket Natsu with them who would fire them up with some stupid lecture about never giving up, screaming Fairy Tail a dozen times and then actually spewing some fire just for emphasis.

Aya chuckled at the imagination of tiny Natsu screaming at her and Gray for being such crybabies. She rolled over onto her back again and stared into the wide blue above her, calming her unsteady breathing.

"Hey…", her friend muttered, sounding unsure.

"Mhh…" She made a small sound of acknowledgement, still not moving her gaze from the wide blue sea above her.

"We will make them proud again."

Now she turned to him, looking more intrigued by his statement than the baby blue sky.

"I mean, we will make Fairy Tail the strongest guild in Fiore again, so that no one will ever disrespect our friends again. We will start here in Magnolia, you know, kick those stupid ogres out of our old guild house, then we can start doing missions again, like before, kick some asses here and there, and soon enough no one will even remember the seven years we were gone." He grinned as if this explanation would solve all their problems.

It didn't. Not for her anyways.

Nevertheless she smiled at him and agreed weakly. She didn't want her pessimistic thoughts to put him down as well. So she just approved of his small speech. In all honesty, that wasn't the best solution to get them back on number one. It wasn't a solution at all. It would take them years to earn their reputation back and even then it wasn't guaranteed that people wouldn't disrespect them for the seven years of absence in which the guild – quite understandably – took a turn for the worse. What they needed was something quick, something that would display their strength to a big audience, something that would give people no chance to overlook their abilities. Something like-

"The Magical Tournaments!"

"The what now?"

Makarov had decided that their guild would take part in the Daimatou Enbu, some sort of annual magical tournament to pinpoint the strongest guild in Fiore, after Romeo had suggested the idea to the Tenrou people. Apparently Fairy Tail had placed last every time the guild took part in it during their absence, giving them little hope of an actual win this year. But Master being – well – himself, heard of the prize money and immediately made the decision of joining the competition.

With the new plan, however, came many opinions. The Tenrou people were divided into a group of complete enthusiasts, such as Natsu, and slightly doubtful one's, including Aya herself (due to the fact that she didn't like to go into things blind and had close to no information on the event). The others were plainly against the idea because of how bad their experiences were throughout the last years.

(Not that any of those views would matter after Master had made up his mind.)

"When is this tournament even taking place?", Ayaka asked finally silencing the room after the screams of agreement and disagreement.

"In three months", Romeo answered promptly.

She squinted her eyes at the new information. "That's quite a time limit. We would have to train more intensely than ever before if we want to be in shape by then." In their current state they wouldn't even be able to beat the lowest guilds let alone fight against top notch competitors.

"Then let's get started immediately!" Natsu took her statement as an open invitation to leave for practice, but fortunately Erza held him back.

"Calm down for a minute", she told him when he continued to struggle against her iron grip. Seeing the red glimpse in her eyes, though, he completely stagnated his movements and fell limp.

Disregarding the childish behaviour of Natsu, Aya turned to Romeo, who was seemingly the only one serious enough to inform her about these magical games without using the words 'money' or 'fun'.

"It's in Crocos, right? That means it's supervised by the kingdom. So if there was any kind of threat like… let's say a dark guild sneaking into the competition they would step in to prevent any harm from happening to either audience or mages, correct?"

Romeo nods. "There are soldiers posted all over the venue. The king usually watches the games so the security measurements are extremely high."

She mumbled a small 'good' after he had said that. Security was more than important, since events of such size would most likely attract attacks of any sort. Enemies – may it be criminals or foreign countries – would get the chance to have the entire defence of the country in one spot.

Gray who had been rooted to the spot on Aya's left side suddenly stepped forward and turned to the non-Tenrou-people. "Which guilds are the strongest at the moment?", he questioned, even though Ayaka would guess that he really only was interested in one guild.

"Well…", Macao muttered, as if not wanting to talk about who took Fairy Tail's place on the top from them, "among them are mainly still the same guilds as seven years ago like Blue Pegasus or Lamia Scale but the strongest of all is Sabertooth."

Aya furrowed her eyebrows at the foreign name. "Sa-ber-tooth?", she tested the word out, emphasising each syllable as if they didn't belong together. It seemed weird to her, that this guild she had never heard about before suddenly was the number one in Fiore. Painfully obvious was their absence once again. Seven years ago she knew every important guild and all the masters and their abilities as well as the S-rank mage's, but now she felt as if her knowledge was a dusty book at the very back of the bookshelf nobody used anymore, old and ancient and with no relevant information about current times.

Gray who had obviously spotted the scowl on Aya's face decided to lead the discussion into another direction before the young mage could grow even more irritated over her knowledge gap. "So if it's already decided that we participate why don't we hit the road already? If the tournament's in three months we should use all our time to regain our strength."

Makarov clapped his hands, happy that his decision had finally been accepted. "Great. We'll decide who's in the team after you come back, so you better use your time well. Now get going, brats!"

* * *

_**Author's Note:** Hi guys, this is Franny! I am semi-new to this website (I tried my luck here when I was younger, and now I wanna do it more seriously). This is a story I have been working on for a couple months now and will be working on for another couple. This story is close to my heart and I hope you appreciate it as much as I do. _

_If you have any questions about me or the proceeding of the story, feel free to send them my way!_

_All the love to you for reading! Stay tuned for Chapter 2!_


	3. Chapter 2

**Chapter 2 - the partition**

* * *

Dusty.

Dusty. Messy. Dirty. Abandoned. Simply of no comfort. That is what Aya's room looked like at the moment.

She was actually one of the cleanest Fairy Tail members, always tidying after herself, organizing her documents. She had to with all the files lying around in her apartment. Some of them were cases she had been following, suspicious activities which wouldn't have left her alone until she had known if they had posed any threat – so she pursued them. Others were simply data she had been gathering for missions, finding it easier to know everything and anything about cities, villages, dangerous woods and all sorts of mages to complete the tasks without unneeded confrontation.

The latter would hopefully bring her an advantage in the games (minus this infamous Sabertooth guild, where she still had to do her fair share of digging).

All those files had neatly been categorized and placed in a large closet together with her books, maps, and all sorts of other information on basically anything. And even though all of them would probably be coated in a thick layer of dust they weren't the problem.

No, the _real _problem were her clothes which had been scattered all over the place, some on the floor, others thrown over furniture. She had left for Tenrou Island in such a hurry that she hadn't even got the chance to properly pack. So she'd ended up rummaging through all her items in a haste to find the most comfortable fighting clothes and had quickly stuffed them in a backpack.

Now however, she was back in her room in Fairy Hills to find this mess, when she should already be packing for her next journey.

"Oh God in heaven, what have I done?", Ayaka mumbled in utter shock. "How am I supposed to even find anything?"

Plotting down onto the bed (by the way also littered with clothes) face forward she fell into her pillow only to scream into it in frustration. This had to be some cruel joke one of her comrades played on her, enchanting her place to look this messy when in reality beneath the spell was a beautifully organized room. It simply had to be.

"A-chan?"

Face still planted firmly into her pillow Ayaka answered the intruder with a 'yes?' which actually just sounded like 'eeeth'.

A light weight suddenly landed on her lower back, two soft paws grazing over her exposed skin gently as if afraid to hurt the young mage. "A-chan, are you okay?", a high-pitched, premature voice asked.

Another 'eeth' followed.

"A-chan, you don't look okay, though." The paws on her back moved, seemingly turning around to take a look around the room. Then came a giggle. "A-chan, your room's a mess."

Ayaka huffed, plainly annoyed by her little companion now. Propping herself up ever so slowly so the little creature on her back wouldn't be moved too erratically she retorted, "Thanks for the info, I really didn't notice."

The weight suddenly was lifted from her again and the little paws of the cat now were placed directly in front of Ayaka's face. "A-chan, don't be mean", the light-pink cat reprimanded with a cute little pout on her lips.

"M'not mean", the other protested weakly, clearly unbothered by the usual scolding of her partner. Aya rolled onto her back, now lying sprawled out like a star fish, gaze on the ceiling. Her tight black crop-top had ridden up through the movement and now exposed her rips completely.

A sigh passed her rosy lips. "Training's not gonna be easy, Mika, you know that, right?" Admittedly, it would probably go faster for the little exceed sitting on her left to regain her strength since she wasn't a fighter herself. For Ayaka, though, it would be a hard three months. Seven years ago she had practiced every single day on her flexibility and speed as well as her physical and magical strength. So even if time had stopped in regards to their age they had still slept for several years, ceasing to move in any way.

Mika bopped her nose with an adorable giggle. "A-chan has had more stressful times than now. And you like practicing. It's all you ever do."

Whirling her head around to face her partner, Ayaka's strawberry blonde hair landed in her face. Both girls erupted into laughter at the mistake and soon Aya forgot that Mika basically just called her a workaholic.

"Okay, enough with the nonsense. We have a journey to pack for."

* * *

"I still can't believe that you're not coming with us. Like we are a team, it's basically our duty to train together!", Lucy complained once again.

"Yeah! Who am I gonna fight against now?!" Natsu gripped Aya's shoulders, rocking her back and forth aggressively as if to shake some sense into her.

"Oi! Fire for brains! Leave her alone!"

"What did you just call, pervert?!"

And again, it took them approximately 0.3 seconds to be in a headlock about to start brawling in public. They should be glad that Erza wasn't here yet otherwise they would have been knocked out by now.

"Hey guys, stop it!", Aya called, not really wanting the entire rail station to be looking at them, but they didn't even acknowledge her. "Oi! Fuckers! Cut the crap!" Nothing.

"You should be glad that I'm not wiping the floor with you, icicle on legs!"

"How about you set your own ass on fire, dumbass?"

"Sicko!"

"Idiot!"

Ayaka growled. Releasing just enough of her anger in form of magic to change the atmosphere around them, she stepped closer to the two mages. The air around them had turned cold and heavy with pressure as the light drained from the area. "Stop it now."

They immediately let go of each other and jumped at least two meters apart. Just as fast as they had stopped fighting they started apologizing profusely.

"Leave it, I don't really care as long as you don't start sparring at the fricking station. That's just irresponsible." Ayaka shrugged it off, stepping back again and taking her magic with her. She really didn't want to make a scene in public with the reputation her guild already had.

In that exact moment Erza strolled in, packed full with suitcases as per usual. "Hello, Aya. I thought you told us that you'd be training on your own?"

"Erza!", the ginger-head smiled sweetly, "I am, I am. Just decided to say goodbye." She waved it off, blushing slightly. "Oh wow! You are travelling light this time, aren't you?" She asked, gesturing at the mountain of bags in front of her.

"Ah yes, I decided to just bring the essentials for our training."

She laughed, decidedly ignoring the unbelieving mutters of her team mates behind her about how emthat/em was supposed to be light. Lucky for them Erza didn't seem to even notice.

"A-chan!" Mika landed on her head erupting in giggles. "A-chan, Juvia told me that you emlike/em Gray." Another childish giggle left her mouth at the word 'like' as if it was naughty even saying it.

'Of course she would say that, jealous thing doesn't see the difference between friends and lovers when it comes to her Gray-sama.'

"Did she now?" Ayaka had to strongly suppress the urge to roll her eyes. This had been happening more often than not and even after explaining to Juvia that she, indeed, had nothing to worry about, she still somehow found things to get jealous about.

Mika made a small sound of affirmation before adding, "She even told me that you didn't want to train with the others because you'd get jealous of seeing Gray and her together."

'The fucking irony.'

Gray must've overheard the conversation judging by his more than irritated facial expression and the not-so-subtle eye roll. He didn't bother to say anything, though, way too used to the overbearing woman by now.

All at once an idea popped into Aya's head. "Ka-chan", she sing-songed sweetly, "would you tell Juvia something for me, please?"

Eagerly Mika flew from her head to hover in front of Ayaka's face and leaned in to listen to the secret message she was about to deliver, nodding animatedly with every word her partner told her and noting it down somewhere in the back of her mind. When Aya leaned back again, Mika rushed in a hurry to find the water mage.

"What did you just do?" Lucy and Levi joined the strawberry head, after watching her suspicious actions.

"You'll see", she answered cryptically, stopped for a second to think, then added, "In three, two, one…"

"GRAY-SAMA!" Juvia ran up to the ice mage and embraced him in a bone-crushing hug. Ayaka nearly had the mind to feel sorry for him, but then again, it was Gray so she really didn't care that much.

"Gray-sama, Juvia had no clue that Gray-sama wanted to be alone with her so badly that he even told his best friend not to come! Juvia is sorry that she abandoned Gray-sama for so long, she will not leave his side on this trip. Promise!"

If it had been possible for Gray to look even more annoyed with his stalkerish admirer, he had definitely reached his limit now.

Then, a horn blasted through the station, signalling a train coming in.

"Okay, everyone, let's go now. Our train is arriving!", Erza demanded then turned to the team mate she would have to leave behind. "Good luck with your training, Aya. Take care of yourself!"

The addressed smiled softly and answered with a simple 'you too'.

Then everyone gathered around her to hug or otherwise wish her farewell before boarding the train. Well, everyone except Gray, who was still trapped in Juvia's embrace and now looking at his best friend desperately.

She, however, only shrugged nonchalantly at his predicament, then proceeded to chuckle lightly and say, "Have fun, you two lovebirds!" And she could have sworn she heard Gray try to shout out for help, but it must have been muffled by the gigantic boobs currently suffocating him.

After everybody had boarded the train, Ayaka waited for it to leave patiently with her little fluff ball in her arms. Then, seconds before the train started moving, Natsu leaned out the window and shouted, "Let's do our best for Fairy Tail, Ayaka!"  
And the young mage never could've agreed with anything more.

* * *

_**Author's Note: **__Hi guys! This one was a bit of a chaotic chapter haha, but there will be more storyline in the next one - I promise! I hope you enjoyed this chapter anyways. _

_See you soon for the next update. _

_Kisses and Love,_

_Franny!_


	4. Chapter 3

**Chapter 3: the departure**

* * *

The wind blew heavily through the woods moving every plant in the area with it. The sound of it drowned other noises out. The rocky mountains in the southeast of Crocus were known for their harsh weather conditions and therefore in an abandoned state. Only wanderers would cross these woods on the way over to the mountain chains, and occasionally also guild mages on a mission.

That's why Ayaka liked to train here. She liked to be left alone, undisturbed and unwatched. It was in her nature, really. She had always preferred complete silence while studying or practicing, so nothing could disrupt her focus. There were few people she allowed close to her while training, one of them being Gray and the other being Mika.

In fact, the little exceed was right now flying next to her. She struggled a bit against the strong wind but still did her best to keep up with the young mage.

That was also another reason why Ayaka liked the mountains the most. From Magnolia to here was a long way and most of it had to be walked since there was no train station leading up the hills. It served as part of their training, hiking up the steep landscape through the uncomfortable weather conditions.

Speaking of weather, the sky seemed to suddenly get darker than before, black clouds covering up the baby blue sea there was just seconds ago. It didn't take long until the first rain drops hit Aya's face and even shorter till it started pouring down on them as it drenched the two Fairy Tail mages whole.

Fortunately for them there was a small inn on the way to their destination, where they could rest for a while before continuing their journey. And even better was that it was now right in front of them.

"Come on, Mika! We're nearly there!" Ayaka shouted over the sound of the rain hitting down on the floor. Together with the strong wind the rain was now hitting their faces with full force and getting them to run even faster until they finally reached the door to the wooden house.

Ayaka nearly fell through the door, in a hurry to reach the warm, dry space. She rushed to the reception, where a young woman was seated, and speedily asked her for a room for one (since Mika and her could easily share a bed). After receiving the card as quickly as possible from the young worker who only gave her an understanding look, they nearly leaped up the stairs to their room.

"Goddammit was that cold!", she swore as soon as the door fell close behind the pair, then let her backpack drop to the floor. Her clothes were dripping and so was her hair and, looking over to her best friend next to her, she noted that she wasn't the only one.

"I guess we should take a bath, hm?"

* * *

After a refreshingly hot bath the duo decided to go downstairs to get something to eat. The dining hall in the inn was surprisingly crowded. There was not a single empty table for the pair so they had no other option but to join an already occupied one. Not really in the mood for useless small-talk and overbearing drunks they navigated their way through the masses to the back of the room, where two rather young looking men were seated.

"Is it okay if we join you?"

None of them spared her a glance and simply kept on conversing.

Ayaka cleared her throat loudly, trying to catch their attention anew. "Sorry, but can we sit here?"

Still not looking at her one of them raised his hand and gestured for her to sit down, all while still talking to his partner in a hushed tone.

Rolling her eyes at the rude behaviour she sat down without another word as Mika landed softly on her shoulder. Before them the two men were still bent over something all the while whispering to each other. After looking at the item in front of those two, Aya finally recognised the object to be a map of the area.

Wanderers, maybe? But why would they lower their voices if they were simple travellers? There's no need to keep hiking routes a secret, after all.

Curiosity got the better of her. After all, today was about resting their bodies during the storm, so why not spend the time investigating some sketchy people?

"Mika-chan? Would you do me a favour and get me something to drink? I'm parched!"

The exceed answered with a hasty nod, obviously keen on getting away from their rude company.

As soon as her partner left, Ayaka leaned forwards putting her arms on the table to be able to properly rest her chin in her right hand. In that position she could completely see the map laid out before the fellow guests. However, she couldn't get a closer look at _them _as they were turned to each other so she was only able to see their side profile and due to the dimmed lights in the tavern it was near to impossible to identify them, had they been someone she had met before. So she simply stayed focused on the map, which unfortunately didn't give away much.

There was one area deep in the mountains circled with a red pen with a cross in the middle and another two places marked with black, one being the inn where we currently were. The other one seemed to be located to the east of the tavern. With the information on the map it seemed just like they were looking for something… or maybe hunting someone?

No common travellers would go into the deep parts of the mountains for a hike, they were too steep for that. There were also no trade routes going through these areas, as most merchants took the long way around the mountain chain to avoid any casualties. So their motive had to be different.

Bounty hunters, maybe?

No. No ordinary criminal would hide away in those mountains. The climb was too dangerous to risk without proper equipment. And high class criminals wouldn't be chased by simple bounty hunters with no magical abilities. The council would appoint a guild for that.

A guild. Were those two across her mages?

It would make sense given the young age and secretive behaviour. (Even though her own guild mates had never been able to keep quiet about a mission before.) Unfortunately, she had no chance of spotting their guild mark as they were both fully covered in their coats. So unless she wanted to actually start a conversation with them, she was stuck in her mystery solving.

With a sigh she sunk back in her seat and adverted her eyes from the duo across from her to scan the crowd for her winged friend, but couldn't find the small exceed in between the travellers and wanderers.

Come to think of it, there was an extraordinary number of travellers here. Normally when they came here (meaning seven years ago) there were close to no other people around. The inn was mainly occupied by merchants who took a short cut through the woods or a few brave hikers looking for an adrenaline rush. Even with the bad weather leading people to search for refuge, there would usually not be such a crowd here.

"Odd…" There must be something in the mountains that led all those people here. Maybe it was also the same thing the two young mages were looking for. "Whatever… as long as it doesn't disturb my training."

"Training?"

Aya flinched at the sudden response to her incoherent mumble. She was talking to herself, speaking lower than even a whisper so she didn't expect anyone to listen to her, or rather be able to.

Turning around, however, she found that her counterparts had stopped their discussions. The map was gone from the table, probably stowed away safely in one of their coats and now that they weren't hunched over their map anymore Ayaka was finally able to see their faces properly.

The mage on the left was leaning forward on the table where his elbow was placed. With his hand he was lacily holding up his head, as if it was too heavy for his shoulders to carry. Blond strands were hanging in his face partially covering it but not enough to hide his blue eyes which were staring at Ayaka's auburn ones.

On his side was his black haired partner, who was leaning back into the cushioned bench the both were seated on with his hand draped over the top on the empty spot next to him. He averted his gaze as soon as Aya turned around as if burned by her stare and his blood red eyes (quite a peculiar colour she noted) were now watching the bar area intently.

"Pardon?" Ayaka was taught little as a kid, but manners were one of her few lessons.

"I asked: What training?" The blond one repeated himself.

Repressing the urge to roll her eyes, she retorted: "I heard you the first time. I'm just not sure why I would tell a stranger that."

He smirked, obviously quite amused at her. "Is it that top secret?"

"It's a matter of safety not secrecy." That wasn't true, actually. She just didn't want anyone following her to her training spot, especially not some creep from a tavern.

"Well then, how about we get past the stranger part and intro-"

"A-CHAN!" Mika shouted from behind her partner, flying full speed to reach the table. She was about to rush into the black haired mage, but fortunately enough the seven years she slept on Tenrou Island hadn't slowed down Ayaka's reflexes, so she caught the exceed mid-air.

"Are you insane?" The strawberry blonde mage asked her partner, still tightly holding her in both hands at arms length away from her.

"A-chan! You have to tell those two that Fairy Tail is the strongest guild and that no one can beat them! Tell them! Tell them! Tell them!" She pouted and pointed at two figures approaching the table.

Two little exceeds – one with dark red fur and a small blue vest and the other with green fur and what seemed to be a pink frog onesie – had flown over to the mages as well and were now heading straight to the young men across from her.

"Ha! Fairy Tail is weak. Sabertooth is now the strongest guild with the strongest mages. And Sting-kun is the greatest of them all!", the red exceed exclaimed and landed on the table in front of the blond mage.

"Saber…tooth?" Wasn't that the guild Romeo had talked about?

"That's not true!" Mika wiggled her way out of Ayaka's grasp and landed on the table to stand exactly in front of the red exceed. "Fairy Tail is the strongest guild and we'll show you in the games! We'll beat your guild with all of our best mages, like Erza-san and Natsu-san. And A-chan will beat your stupid Sting-kun!"

"No one can beat Sting-kun! Especially not someone nobody has even heard of before. The dragon slayer duo is famous for their strength. They would never loose against someone like your A-chan!"

"A-chan can!"

"Sting-kun would beat her for sure!"

"A-chan has never lost before!"

"Neither has Sting-kun!"

"Maybe we should find out who's better then!"

"Wow, wow, wow. Stop right there. I am not fighting anyone here. Mika, stop provoking a fight, please." Ayaka was quick to step in and pulled her partner back onto her side of the table.

"Good, you would've lost against Sting-kun, anyway."

This goddamn cat./span/emspan lang="EN-GB" She hastily covered her exceeds mouth with her palm before another fight broke lose. She was not about to battle her competitors in the Magical Tournament before the tournament. They would have enough time for sparring in Crocus.

"So… introductions seem a bit unnecessary now, don't they, Fairy Tail mage?" The blond guy – 'Sting-kun' – who had not made one move to undermine the fight happening before them was still smirking at Ayaka from across her.

"I guess they are", she simply answered. If the red exceed spoke the truth the duo in front of her were indeed mages, from Sabertooth nonetheless, a guild that magically appeared seven years ago with only five strong members to build their way to the top. That would mean that those two men opposite of her were Sting Eucliffe and Rouge Cheney, two dragon slayers who work together incredibly well.

"So, A-chan, care to tell me where you are headed now?"

Ayaka frowned at the name, obviously discontent with anyone else but Mika calling her by such a familiar nickname. "I don't think my direction has anything to do with you."

Sting's arrogant smirk widened. "Well, I heard there were some bad people in the mountains at the moment, so a young girl like you should take care. Maybe even find some company to stay with."

"I pass." However disgustingly blatant his pick-up line may have been, it also entailed some interesting information. "But I guess you wouldn't have time for that anyway as you are headed to catch those bad people, right?"

"Aren't you clever."

"I try."

Only now, Ayaka seemed to notice the vibrations on her palm coming from the little exceed she was holding on to, who obviously was trying to say something through her hand. Mumbling a 'sorry' to her little partner she lifted her arm and freed the cat.

The exceed breathed in heavily, overexaggerating it just enough for her friend to notice her annoyance, and then started a rant about her patent on the nickname 'A-chan': "Only I can call her that, Sting-kun! You can't steal my name for her!" Mika was pouting by now all while still lecturing the strong dragon slayer before her.

Behind her back, Ayaka was trying to figure out a way that she could get away from the table and the Sabertooth members without looking like she was running. She wasn't worried about the argument between the exceeds but for some reason she had a bad feeling about the dragon slayer duo of Sabertooth.

She had done her fair share of research about the young guild before leaving Magnolia for her training, and as hard as it was to get any viable information on any of the original guild members and the founding of the guild, it was rather easy to find some of the latest gossip about the brutal ways of the light and shadow mages. Apparently, they weren't the most level headed people out there (not that she could really judge given the temper of her own comrades) and started fights for no other reason than to showcase their skills. They weren't opposed to using violence as their first solution and even then, when it simply wasn't needed.

All those things she heard were enough to warn her about not getting too close to the duo, especially before the games. It would only cause for bad publicity, maybe even sabotage their participation or her training schedule. Whatever would have happen, Ayaka was sure it wouldn't do her guild any good. So she tried to prevent it, before it could even turn into a problem.

"Okay, okay, little one. I get it. A-chan is for you", Sting raised his hands in surrender, while giving the overprotective cat a cute smile, as if to win her over with his charms, "So what should I call her then?"

"Just A-"

"You shouldn't." Ayaka quickly stepped in, not trying to give away her identity to an enemy of her guild. A name is valuable information, if you know how to use it right.

"Oh?" Sting seemed surprised, cocking an eyebrow at the cold attitude of the fellow mage.

"But A-chan-", Mika tried to complain about her hostility towards the two young men across from her, obviously not able to understand the situation as Ayaka could. The exceed wasn't the one to meticulously research Sabertooth after all.

"No buts, Ka-chan. You should really learn to control your blabbermouth, you don't even know who they are!", Ayaka reasoned, firmly but still trying not to upset her friend too much. It was hard to tell her partner why she couldn't let her be friendly to a bunch of people in an inn without giving away what she really knew about the people sitting opposite of her.

"So, if I can't know your real name, should I just continue to call you A-chan?", the blond mage smirked, definitely amused by the situation his probing had caused. "Or maybe fairy? You are a Fairy Tail mage after all, aren't you?"

Ayaka fake-gagged at that. "Please never actually call me that, or I might puke for real." His cheesy pick-up lines were already too much for her to handle, anyways.

Then, a nearly taunting glint washed over his eyes, replacing his seemingly innocent playfulness with almost evil intent. It shocked Aya, to say the least, and she squinted her eyes at the man in front of her.

The black haired man next to Sting obviously noticed the change in his friends behaviour, as well. Even though he had barely glanced at the four people arguing in front of him – not really taking his eyes off the little exceed in the frog costume ever since they arrived back at the table – he had had to have traced the conversation in detail, probably filtering out the information he found useful or maybe just keeping an eye on his partner or both. Most likely both.

"Sting. Don't", he warned, evidently having caught on to Sting's train of thought already.

Sting, however, completely ignored the warning of his partner, not even batting an eye at the harsh, reprimanding tone of the other. But how could he when his gaze was so intensely focused on the girl before him.

"Hmm…" He put a hand on his chin, as if in deep thought, when really Ayaka could feel that he wasn't. "If not A-chan and not fairy, what else could I call you?" Then he suddenly clapped his hands together, obviously coming up with something. "I got it! How about I call you by your real name? Hmm?" He leaned forward, grinning like a Cheshire cat. Almost instinctively, Ayaka reached out to pull Mika close to her chest, engulfing the little exceed in her arms in a protective manner. "Would you like that better, Ayaka Kosman?"

Ayaka _spluttered_ when he said her name. Not because he knew it, but because he said it in a way that should remind her of how he knew it. And oh was she clueless.

It wasn't difficult to get information on Fairy Tail members, especially on S-rank ones. Back in the day they were constantly circling the news with either new accomplishments or another rampage that lead to too much destruction to be called a simple accident. So, Aya really wasn't too shocked to find out that the Sabertooth mages knew who she was. Really, it was to be expected that other guilds conduct research on their opponents as well.

But that glint. That tone in his voice, when he said her name. There was something heavy in that. Heavy with feelings she couldn't decipher. And it completely threw her off her game.

"W-We should leave now, Mika." Even though Ayaka was speaking to the exceed in her arms, her eyes never once left the ice blue ones of the man in front of her, watching the storm in them form and unravel.

"Why leave so soon? You never even got to eat anything. Isn't that what you came here for?"

He was playing with her. It was so goddamn obvious that it hurt her. After all, she hated mind games. Too often had she been manipulated and played with, too often had her brain been damaged for the amusement of others. She had sworn herself not to let it happen again, never to let herself fall victim to such cruel treatment again. So, why couldn't she look away from those eyes? Why did her feet not move, when she willed them to?

"You should stay. Eat with us." He smirked at her unmoving gaze, probably aware of the impact his actions – his _words_ – had on her mind.

"Sting, do you think that's a good idea?" Rogue was obviously discontent, from what Ayaka could tell by the tone of his voice. Still, she couldn't turn her head to look at the red eyed mage herself, too afraid to miss something in the expression of his partner. Or just too perplexed to move.

"The best I've had in a while." Sting let his smirk break out into a grin, looking a lot friendlier than just seconds ago.

"I-I don't-" Ayaka swallowed. Her throat had become dry under the focused stare of the blond mage in front of her. "I don't think that's a good idea." She paused for a moment, then added "we are competitors after all" as an afterthought.

The strawberry blonde mage didn't understand why she was so shaken by the Sabertooth member. His statement wasn't aggressive and his gaze was more teasing than anything now. But something about the situation set her off. Sting was deliberately holding back information which concerned her as well and relished in her unknowingness. And _god _did she hate being left in the dark.

Taking in a deep breath she willed away her nervousness. "What I mean is, that we will be opponents in the Daimatou Enbu in not even three months."

"So you can't eat with us now?" He raised an eyebrow, mockingly so. "I promise we can play enemies as much as you want in Crocos."

'Play enemies'. What the heck was that even supposed to mean?

Looking down at the little cat in her arms, who had watched the entire interaction with confusion as much as interest, she was faced with her best friend's own unsure stare. They hadn't eaten since they left Magnolia in the morning and even though Ayaka could last long without food and water she doubted that her furry companion could.

"Whatever", she finally gave in, seeing no reason in dragging this conversation out even longer, when she knew that she couldn't let Mika go to bed hungry. Even if that meant staying with the Sabertooth mages even longer. "We will stay for food and a drink." The blond across from her broke out in a grin, obviously content with the answer. "But", Ayaka quickly added, "only if you're paying."

Sting looked over at his black haired partner, who only rolled his eyes in annoyance. Then his eyes found Aya's auburn one's again. "That can be arranged."

* * *

_**Author's Note: **Hi guys! Hope you liked the new update. In the next one you'll get even more Sting content, so stay tuned. _

_Thanks for reading once again!_

_xoxo Franny_


	5. Chapter 4

**Chapter 4 - the revelation**

* * *

One drink turned into two and two into four until they were left with two empty bottles of sake and two – very – tipsy mages.

"Another one!", Sting called out to the waitress. His words were muddled together and rushed, like his tongue had become heavy in his mouth, making Ayaka break out into a fit of giggles (something very unlike her normally composed persona).

Rogue and his little companion (Frosch, was it?) had left the table after the first bottle of sake had been emptied. That was around the same time they had finished their meals and when Ayaka had once again tried to leave. Sting, however, had been quicker than her, ordering another bottle of sake to their table and telling her to drink with him because "how could I finish all that on my own?". So, she had stayed, telling herself that maybe, if he got drunk enough he would lose his cocky attitude and tell her why the everloving hell he knew her name in the first place.

That was her first mistake.

She hadn't thought about how she had basically been asleep for seven years and had therefore lost all resistance to alcohol. In other words: She was a lightweight. Mike – as attentive as she was – had noticed the change in behaviour already after the first bottle of sake was emptied and had tried to reason with her friend, telling her that maybe they should just go upstairs and sleep. Her attempts had almost swayed Aya to get up and leave even though she had been far away from her goal, but of course Sting couldn't let the situation go uncommented. Smirking at her he had asked if she was alright, maybe needed assistance to go upstairs. And obviously Ayaka's pride couldn't have taken another hit from the blond across from her that evening. So she'd told Mika she'd stay.

About halfway through the second bottle the other two exceeds decided to head upstairs. Lecter – Sting's personal little cheerleader – had been reluctant at first, but had quickly given up on his resolve after seeing the expression on Sting's face. Mika, who'd already nearly fallen asleep, was, on the other hand, more than glad when Ayaka had suggested that they should go to bed.

And now the third bottle was placed between them.

Sting swiftly grabbed the sake from the table to pour both of them a shot, first filling Aya's glass to the brim and then his own.

The auburn eyed mage took hold of her glass carefully, not trying to look even more drunk by spilling the alcohol on the table, and downed her drink in one go, before placing the now empty cup on the table. Sting copied her actions.

"So", Sting started, leaning forward while resting his chin in the palm of his hand, "What made you decide to stay?" He smirked.

Ayaka leaned forward as well, causing their faces to be just mere centimetres apart. "First of all, I'm not one to hop in bed with some guy from a bar whom I barely even know. I can do better than that." She leaned even closer, feeling the breath of the other on her face. It made her shiver, knowing that he was so close he could probably hear her heart beat without using his dragon slayer abilities. "So whatever you were hoping for would happen, it ain't happening." She leaned back in her chair, resting against the back rest with a smug grin on her face.

"Hmm…" Sting didn't seem bothered by her rejection in the slightest. "So why did you stay?"

It threw her off, his cockiness. His unwavering confidence. And that smug smile which told her emhe knew something she didn't.

"How do you know me?"

He raised an eyebrow and gestured with his free hand for her to elaborate.

"You know me. That's why you played around, wanting me to tell you my name, even though you knew it already, why you entertained Mika in her arguing and why you-", emflirted so shamelessly early/em, "why you tried to figure out where I was headed. You wouldn't do that if you didn't know me. Not even if you knew I was from Fairy Tail."

The conversation sobered her up, not completely and not even a lot to be honest, but enough to organize her thoughts into coherent sentences and try to make sense of the situation at hand.

"Took you long enough to ask." The light mage leaned back, lazily throwing both his arms over the backrest of the couch.

"It's not like I usually have to ask people why they know me." Ayaka rolled her eyes.

"Good point."

Then nothing. No answer. Just his ice blue eyes following her every move and his stupid goddamn grin on his lips.

"Well?" She was growing nervous. His hesitation to answer (or his unwillingness?) made her even more agitated. Aya leaned forward in an attempt to get closer to the man in front of her, her eyes never leaving his.

That was her second mistake.

Promptly the man leaned forward again, so close to her that their lips would be touching if Ayaka moved even a little. Shocked by the close proximity, she tried to leap backwards. But before that could happen Sting grabbed her arms and pulled her back, not letting go even when she was rooted in her place.

It should have hurt her, _would_ have hurt her, the iron grip on her arms, which probably left deep purple marks of abuse, but she was just emso/em focused on the face in front of her, on those ice blue eyes that reminded her so much of something.

Sting moved even closer, impossibly so, and leaned into her ear. His cheek was pressed against hers as his lips ever so gently grazed her ear lobe.

It should have unnerved her, so why didn't it? Why was she so calm in a position she was manhandled into? Why didn't she move? And why did her head tell her it was okay?

"I'm sure you remember me. I mean, obviously seven years is a long time, but come on, Aya-chan, I didn't change _that_ much, did I?" He leaned back again, retreating to his previous position right in front of her face, and looked straight into her eyes. It didn't look predatory, or intimidating, just… warm, friendly even.

_Is he… ?_

Her eyes widened to the size of saucers as her mouth fell open in a silent gasp, as she fell backwards, ripping her arms out of Sting's grip. Her chair screaked on the floor as she pushed herself away from the table, nearly falling out of it in her rush.

She should have noticed sooner, should've recognised his name, or his face. _Something_ should have given it away. But she had been clueless, not connecting the dots in her mind. No, even more than that. She had completely forgotten about the young boy she'd met seven years ago.

After Tenrou Island, after _him_, all she could focus on was to make her guild proud again, nothing else mattered. Everything from the past, everything that happened around the time of the incident, was banned from her mind. To stop the negativity from flooding her thoughts, and keep the demons at bay.

So, unconsciously, she had also banished the memories of the young blond she had met on her last mission before departing for her duties as an S-rank member on Tenrou Island. She had met the man across from her before when he was still a child – well, seven years of absence spent in a weird anti-aging zone had kept her from growing up while he was in the real world following the rules of time. So now, they would be about the same age, at least physically.

Back then, however, he was a lot younger than her, young and easily impressed by the Fairy Tail member, who came to his town to beat up some bad guys. Honestly, she couldn't even remember what her mission was anymore, the only thing embedded in her mind was the huge smile of the young boy who ran up to her after she had finished her tasks and told her so animatedly about his plans to become the strongest mage of all, even stronger than Natsu Dragneel.

She remembered the cat, Lecter, standing next to the excited child and nodding at everything he said like some bobblehead doll.

She remembered crouching down to be at eye level with the blond, ruffling through his mess of hair, while telling him to train hard as hard as he could but to never forget the passion in his heart.

She remembered him begging for her to teach her. So she did. The entire day she was with the young mage, teaching him lesson after lesson.

And she remembered leaving. She had held him at arm's length, gripping both of his shoulders tightly while looking deep into his eyes, emthose ice blue eyes/em, while she told him to wait. Because in a year she would come back and check on him to make sure he improved.

In a year.

It had been seven, now.

Seven years later that boy sat across from her at some inn in the middle of the goddamn mountain. Six years since she broke her promise. Six years of waiting. emSix years.

So why was he looking at her so kindly? Why wasn't he mad? Where was the anger, the frustration, the questions?

"I-I'm sorry…", Ayaka stammered, her voice barely a whisper. "I'm so-" She swallowed, bringing herself to speak up. "I'm so goddamn sorry."

"You shouldn't be." His grin turned into a smile as he reached out a hand, placing it on the table in front of her with an open palm, an invitation to take it if she wanted, not forcing her to.

She did.

Shakily she reached out for his hand, needing the confirmation that he actually emwas /emextending a hand to her, a sign that he wasn't mad. So, she linked their fingers at the table, not in a romantic way, no, not even platonic. It was to calm her nerves, Sting did it to show her that she wasn't at fault and that he knew that.

"That really killed the buzz now, didn't it?", he joked, shaking the still almost full sake bottle lightly in his free hand.

Ayaka laughed. Actually just forgot about everything that had been stressing her out ever since she arrived at this table and broke out in heart felt laughter. "I guess we should finish the bottle together, then."

And so, about an hour later, Ayaka returned to being a giggling mess in front of the other, while Sting, who could admittedly handle his alcohol a lot better than his female counterpart, made it his personal mission to entertain the strawberry head and sneak even more sake into her cup – just for good measurement.

"I don't remember you being so cheeky seven years ago", she breathed in between giggles, as she caught Sting pour more sake in her glass.

"Seven years is a long time." He finally looked up again, after placing the bottle of alcohol back in between the two at the table. "I didn't know how to act around cute girls back then." Then he winked, sending Aya into another fit of giggles.

"I doubt that you do now." She laughed out when Sting made a face, mocking hurt.

"Hey!" He reached around the table to grab onto Ayaka's arms and pull her out of her chair and onto the bench he was sitting at. "You don't even know me now. I have girls running after me wherever I go."

The mage rolled her eyes. "That is such a fuckboy thing to say." Then she broke out in laughter as the blond haired man leaned over her and attacked. Sting's hands quickly found his way to her sides, tickling her mercilessly for the comment and telling her to take it back.

"Okay! Okay! I'm sorry! I take everything back!" She laughed, raising her hands in surrender.

Sting grinned in victory and threw an arm around her shoulder. After the tickle fight they now were so close, their sides basically squashed together and Aya's legs lazily thrown over Stings thighs (she had raised them during his tickle attack while she was trying to wiggle away). However, the Fairy Tail mage barely even registered their proximity, too intoxicated to even think about if this was inappropriate or not.

"This is fun. We should go out again in Crocus after the games are over."

"Sting Eucliffe, are you asking me on a date?" She pushed herself up from her slouched position to be able to look him directly in the eyes. "Because I told you I am not going to end up in your bed."

He shook his head, chuckling slightly at the accusation. "I told you I'm not a fuckboy." He reached for his cup of sake and took a sip. "I really just wanna go out and spend some quality time after we kick your butts in the games."

Ayaka gasped. "Kick _our_ butts? We will win for sure!"

"Not when you're going against Sabertooth."

"You really are conceited, aren't you?" Ayaka shook her head in disagreement and leaned back.

Sting laughed heartily at the pout on Ayaka's lips and took the bottle to pour himself another cup of sake, only to find the bottle empty.

"Well", he sat up and gently pushed Ayaka off of him. "We should probably get going. It's late and we both have to be somewhere tomorrow."

Ayaka jumped up only to stagger, not expecting the alcohol to affect her that much. Letting out a quiet 'woah' she found her balance again and made her way through the now nearly empty room. Then she looked back at Sting one last time before disappearing through the door.

"Don't expect me to go easy on you at the tournament. Fairy Tail will kick your ass."

* * *

Mika and Ayaka left early in the morning, before sunrise. Ayaka, even though her head was buzzing like crazy and her memory was more than just foggy, was in a great mood. The conversation she had with the Sabertooth mage yesterday really motivated her for her training.

And the first part of that was getting to their training spot.

They first had to wander through the woods into the steeper part of the mountain, where there was close to no vegetation. The ground was dry and sandy, which made it difficult to hike. Also with everything just consisting of stone and dirt, orientation was a rather tricky thing. The first couple of times they had been here, Mika had to fly them over the mountains so that they could find their destination. Otherwise, they would've ended up in an endless labyrinth of stone walls.

There deep in those mountains was their training spot. It was a hidden cave, well actually more like an underground tunnel system with a subterranean stream flowing through it. It had huge areas that were perfect for training her primary magic as well as areas with tall stalagmites she could use to practice her sword skills. Overall, it was the perfect spot for her.

They had arrived around noon and immediately started unpacking when they had reached the cave. Ayaka was more than surprised when she found out that the futons she had brought here years ago were still intact and usable. Those would definitely make their stay a lot more comfortable.

As soon as they were finished with unpacking, Mika and Ayaka built up their training equipment. It wasn't much for the first part of their training, since it didn't require any special weapons. Ayaka simply made sure that she had several bottles of water in reach, a change of clothes (just in case) and a mat rolled out on the floor for her to sit on.

She quickly changed out of her travel clothes and into her sport wear, which consisted of black stretchy pants and a black long sleeved crop top in the same fabric. Then she walked over to the middle of the room and plopped down on the mat she had laid out beforehand.

Taking a deep breath she concentrated on her body, blocking out everything around her. The only thing on her mind, the only thing she felt, was her body. Every fibre, every cell, every piece of herself she had power over. She dug deeper, behind the biological aspects, searching for something even stronger, more primal. Something so untamed, so fierce, so emferocious/em, she herself was unsure how she kept it locked away in her body.

It was more than just a fire burning inside her. It was the abyss.

And with just the reach of her hand she had it in her palm.

Writhing and bristling it showed her that it was a force to be reckoned with. But she had learned that the hard way. Now the warning was empty, nothing more than an annoying alarm going off in the back of her head.

So she grasped her fingers around it, captivating it in her grip, controlling it.

Using the power roaring inside of her has never been the problem, hell she was a mage, how else was she supposed to do her job? The issue was combining it with her primary magic. They kindled each other. Only then was the danger of losing control real.

So, she isolated herself while practicing.

Not even Mika was allowed anywhere near her while she was training the magic her mother had taught her. The little exceed wasn't even in the tunnels during her training session. Ayaka's reach was too far to just put her best friend in the next room.

She pulled on the power – her _magic _– inside of her, letting it flow in her body, giving it free range within the barrier of her skin. She felt herself float, not metaphorically, but actually float over the floor as her body started radiating power.

Next, she concentrated on the atmosphere. Feeling the humid air, smelling the unique scent of the earth, hearing the stream flow outside. She focused on the planet, how it worked, how it lived and thrived, around her.

Her magical power relished in the feeling of being grounded, of having a focus and feeling the pull to the earth. However, it exploded when it was thrown into nothingness.

As soon as Ayaka activated her primary magic it was like her power sprung to live. The air felt like it was sucked out of the room, creating a vacuum no normal living being could survive. The rules of gravity were nullified. Now, not only she was floating, but so was everything else located in this room, which wasn't deeply rooted to the spot.

Every insect unfortunate enough to be in the tunnels while she was training shrunk up under the absence of air, dying gruesomely under Ayaka's power. She felt every single one of them as she crushed them with just a fragment of her power. Inside her mind she was picturing holding her own magic in a tight grasp, with just enough of the lilac colour ball leaking out between her fingers to infiltrate the world. She had practiced control enough times to create a consistent flow within her soul, but she had never dared to release more than just that.

Today, however, she did.

* * *

_**Author's Note:** Hello lovelies! I hope you liked the small detour to Ayaka's and Sting's past. I love to show this kind of sweet and playful side of him instead of the arrogant fuckboy side he has in the Games. Also, are y'all excited to find out more about Ayaka's magic? (My friend, who does all the proofreading, is so on edge because of that haha.)_

_Anyways, since I have a month off uni at the moment, I got loads of free time to write again. So there'll be more updates to come the next few days. Stay tuned!_

_xoxo Franny_


	6. Chapter 5

**Chapter 5 - a coincidence?**

* * *

Mika abruptly flew into the cave tunnel and shouted Ayaka's name, completely ignoring all the safety measurements the both of them had emplaced to keep the little exceed far away from the impact of Aya's magic. Fortunately, though, Ayaka felt her presence soon enough to completely draw back her power. She fell back on the floor with a thud just like everything around her as the room filled with air again.

"A-chan! A-chan!" Panicked, Mika flew into Ayaka's arms.

"What's happening? Are you hurt?" The mage checked her friend all over, inspecting her for any sort of injury which might have provoked the prompt interruption of her training.

"No, but A-chan", the exceed breathed in heavily, "there are people on their way here. I just saw someone pass, while controlling the area. They must've felt your energy and are now headed here."

Ayaka let out an exasperated sigh, before slowly rising from her sitting position on the floor and stretching all her limbs. Inconvenienced by the movement her little companion flew out of her arms with a pout, better deciding to just float in the air.

The mage yawned and then looked around the room. "There's not much to clean up." She met Mika's eyes. "Let's get started quickly and get out of here."

"A-chan!" The little exceed flew after her cat, obviously struggling to keep up with the fast pace while also carrying her backpack.

Ayaka hummed, showing that she was listening, but never slowed down her pace.

"Where are we going?"

"Deeper into the woods." She took a sharp left around a boulder, nearly losing her friend. "We'll stay there for a bit, train on our physical strength, before going back to the cave."

Mika huffed. "But what if they follow us?"

Dodging a low-hanging tree branch, Ayaka led them into the deep parts of the woods, leaving behind the steep and rocky mountains. "Why would they do that? Even if they felt an extraordinary magic in the area, they wouldn't actually take the time to follow it, if they didn't have reason to." Taking another swift turn to the right, she continued, "And we didn't give them any reason to."

"But what if-"

"Be still!" Ayaka stopped suddenly, completely catching the exceed off guard who in turn crashed into the mage's back.

"Wha-"

"There's someone here."

Mika's eyes became the size of saucers and her mouth fell open in surprise. Immediately she clung to Ayaka's arm, ceasing to fly in an attempt to minimize the noise she made. "How close are they?", she whispered into her friend's ear.

"Close. About five hundred meters south of here." Swiftly the young mage turned south a far away look in her eyes as she stared into the deep of the woods. "There are four, headed exactly at us." Her ear twitched. "They're getting faster. They probably know our location by now."

"What should we do?" Mika's voice was laced with dread.

"We stay, face them. They're faster than us, probably travelling without luggage, nothing to slow them down, unlike us. If we run, they'll catch up within minutes. If we face them, we have a chance to-" She halted in her speech, eyes widening in surprise.

"If we face them, then what? Ayaka?!"

"Those fucking arseholes!"

* * *

"Why did you chase us?"

The blond mage shrugged, obviously unbothered with the situation. "At least now you can give me an answer about the date." He grinned.

"That doesn't explain anything!", Ayaka complained. "Wait… so it emis/em a date?!"

Sting laughed, not minding to answer.

Before Ayaka could protest again, Sting's black haired companion joined the conversation. "What happened to that presence?" His voice was gruff, obviously not in the mood for banter (if he was ever).

Ayaka sighed, faking her best concerned look. "We have no clue ourselves, I just felt it and rushed Mika and myself back out her, so we wouldn't get caught up in whatever trouble came with it."

"We could smell you out there, though. You must've been close enough to catch a glimpse." Rogue looked completely unconvinced by her lie.

The strawberry blonde mage whistled through her teeth. "We only just met and you're already stalking me with your weird dragon slayer powers?" She grinned, when her counterpart rolled his eyes in exasperation. "But to answer your… well, accusation, we were resting up in the mountains when the presence first appeared and then immediately fled the scene." She halted. "But why did you chase it?"

Rogue averted his eyes, not willing to give the Fairy Tail mage any important information. Sting, however, had always been more loose-mouthed. "We're on a mission to catch some sort of monster in the mountains. Actually, most guests of the inn are. The bounty's immense so loads of mages are trying their luck. The magical power we felt could've been the monster's so we wanted to check it out."

_What the- A monster in the mountains? What children's book did that crawl out of?_

Simultaneously Ayaka and Mika bursted into laughter. In her fit, Mika forgot to fly and landed up rolling on the floor, never ceasing to giggle. Ayaka was hunched over, holding her abs in pain.

"Uhh…" Sting raised his left eyebrow.

After another couple of seconds the laughter slowed down to a light giggle. Ayaka tried to catch her breath while Mika was still rolling on the floor trying to find her footing again.

"Phew." The young mage managed to stand up straight again, looking up at the Sabertooth members in now silent amusement. "Sorry, that was just too hilarious."

"Sure…", Sting stretched the word out, giving the girl another confused look. "Uh, what was exactly?"

The two girls looked at each other again, before throwing the others an unbelievable glance. "Wait, so you were seriously looking for a monster? A real-life monster? emHere/em?", the strawberry blonde asked, earning her nods from the opposing guild members. "Are you for real?" She shook her head. "There is nothing on these mountains besides rock and stone. And maybe the occasional mage finding their way round here, looking for empeace/em." She shot the blond a meaningful look.

Sting lifted his head in surrender. "Sorry sorry, you were so close to that presence, we were sure you were in trouble."

Rouge butted in, "What do you suggest the presence was, if not a monster?"

Ayaka's gaze shifted to the black haired mage. "Not a monster, that much is for sure." She hesitated a moment, lifting her hand up to her chin. "Actually, it might have been one of those crazy bulls from the farm on the foot of the hill which were bewitched a couple years back. They radiated this insane magical energy, didn't they, Mika?" Again, her eyes found another member of the group, this time with a pleading expression.

"Yeah!", the little exceed exclaimed enthusiastically, "Those were nuts!"

A quiet giggle escaped the girl at her companions enthusiasm. "See? No monster, just boring old magic. But even so, instead of following us around, maybe you should go and chase that monster cow you're looking for?" She sent Sting another look.

"Okay, fine. I got the message. No more stalking the pretty girl then, huh?" The light mage winked at her cheekily. "The date's still on, though."

"I never agreed to that!"

"That's because you never had an option." He laughed wholeheartedly at the unnerved expression on his former teacher.

Mika cleared her throat excessively.

"Oh, damn, I almost forgot. Sorry guys, we gotta hit the road again." Ayaka adjusted the straps of her backpack. "It was… uh, nice? See each other in three months then." She turned around after Mika had landed safely on her shoulder and started to walk away.

A couple meters down the path she stopped again and looked over her shoulder to the Sabertooth members. "It will be fun kicking your asses in the Games."

* * *

_**Author's Note:** Hi guys! Sorry the update took a while. I hope you enjoyed it anyways. _

_Next update the Games finally ~FINALLY~ start, lol, so stay tuned. _

_xoxo Franny_


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